I've been mulling over this idea as I sent out Christmas cards this week, but didn't have time to write it until I finished the cards.
Labels and Letting Go
Each year I send out Christmas cards,
an old tradition, made less hard
by computer composed letters
and pre-printed address labels.
Change of address for those who've moved,
on label sheets, is easy too.
But for those who moved beyond earth's shore
these stickers stand for something more.
It ought to be a simple task
to throw old labels in the trash,
except they trigger memories
of lost friends still so dear to me.
I find myself at end of day
with labels I can't throw away.
Though I know that leaving their names on
won't change the fact that they are gone.
My superstitious Christmas wish
to keep them on my address list
pretends, by merely doing so,
I do not have to let them go.
12/16/25
